This is Koda Kumi’s 40th single and it was released on June 11, 2008. The single reached #2 on the Oricon Weekly Charts and sold 135,442 copies. The first track was used as the theme song for the drama Puzzle.

If you guys don’t already know, I’m a sucker for Koda Kumi’s ballads. 1000 no Kotoba, Promise, Yume no Uta, Ai no Uta, you name it. Much to my surprise, the first track on this quadruple A-side single is the bittersweet love song Moon Crying. Musically, I think the song is really ordinary and nothing special because it just has that standard sound you’d expect from a J-pop ballad. However, Kumi’s fantastic vocal performance makes this song more interesting. She has always put a lot of emotion into her voice and here is another great example of it.

The second track is the collaboration between Kumi and Fergie. That Ain’t Cool is officially labeled as “Koda Kumi feat. Fergie”, but it really should be the other way around. Fergie sings most of the song by herself and that includes the chorus, the focal point of the song (but that’s okay since I kind of like Fergie). I do have mixed feelings about the song because it has its high and low points. For one thing, the lyrics are a little silly, especially when it gets to Kumi’s solo verse, but I really liked the urban sound of the music at the same time.

The next track is a breezy, reggae inspired song produced by PUSHIM. Once Again is relaxing and very soothing to the ears thanks to the gentle violins and drums. As a whole, I thought the song as a whole was nice and Kumi performed it well, especially during the chorus.

The fourth track was no surprise since it’s similar to what appeared on Kumi’s 4 hot wave and FREAKY singles: the quintessential summer pop song. Lady Go! is average but very vibrant from start to finish. At least it’s more varied than her previous summer songs because of the constant beats and recurring synth.

A more intimate piano version of Moon Crying makes an appearance as a first pressing bonus track. The piano arrangement by itself is very good and Kumi’s vocals still sound radiant. It’s a nice addition to the single.

Overall Rating4 stars

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I thought the complete opposite on Moon Crying. The music was beautiful but has the worst vocals I have ever heard from her. Also, she sounds kinda dead in a few places.
Once Again is nice but the background vocals were really messy.
Lady Go! was the perfect song, IMO. She sounded really good and had the most energy of all.
I agree on That Ain’t Cool.

I actually really hated her vocals on Moon Crying, i think her voice is getting more and more winy with each ballad. Yume no uta (winderful vocals), Ai no uta (Chorus was annoying but the res was good), Moon crying (it kinda hurts to hear her voice)

That ain’t cool… the name describes what i think of it.

Once again was nice and Lady! Go was just wonderful to me. The only Kumi summer song i’ve liked since the Best First things era

I absolutely loved Moon Crying, well not so much until after the first chorus (the music gets better). I prefer it over Ai no Uta but not over Yume no Uta (<333)
That Ain’t Cool is too repetitive at the end…and I wish the choruses were cut in half. And I wish Kuu would sing in Japanese on her part.
So I pretty much agree with you. Once Again is really forgettable for me lol.
Lady Go! can give me a headache at times but hey, she had to do the summer song and she did it differently so hurray for that.

I loved this single. I thought every aspect of it was beautiful…except “That Ain’t Cool feat. Fergie.” It was okay, but it was too…repetitive. That and the fact that Kuu-chan had one verse in the whole song.

I know that the song was a gift to Kuu from Fergie, but she could have given Kuu-chan more parts!!!

Anyway. I like “Lady Go!” It’s fun. :3 That and “Moon Crying” are my faves.